October 8, 2012 at 13:09Prestigio Roadrunner 500 DVR Overview
Over the past couple of years, car DVRs have become quite popular. Analysts predict that this year about 1 million of such devices will be sold, which is 2-3 times more than last year. Agree, impressive numbers. Today we’ll talk specifically about the Prestigio Roadrunner 500 model. The
Prestigio Roadrunner 500 is made in the “candy bar” form factor, that is, the screen is not folding, it is mounted in the main body. Although the part of the device in which the lens is attached to the other part with a hinge. This is necessary for more convenient “aiming” of the lens on the road. For this, a screen with a diagonal of 2 inches is used. On it, you can view the content shot by the device.
The Prestigio Roadrunner 500 has a 5-megapixel camera (based on CMOS-matrix), which provides shooting in Full HD 1080p, the maximum frequency in this mode reaches 30 frames per second. If you set the resolution of 848 to 480, then the frequency will be 60 frames per second. By the way, in this model interpolation (software resolution stretching to a higher one) is not applied, that is, the Full HD 1080p format is real.
The device has a 1,000 mAh battery, which provides autonomous operation of the recorder for approximately two and a half hours. This suggests that you can use the Prestigio Roadrunner 500 as a portable camera if you wish. Interestingly, the device is equipped with a Nokia-compatible battery, so you can buy a couple more batteries in reserve and change them during operation. The gadget is also equipped with a convenient and high-quality holder on the suction cup. The holder sections are securely fixed, the device does not hang. At the same time, you can always, without problems, say, turn the camera into the cabin or quickly pull the recorder out of the mount.
Video examples
The videos are taken from the network.
The viewing angle of the camera is 120 degrees - this is the standard for modern DVRs. In fact, this angle can be called the “golden mean”: if it’s smaller, the side curbs will not fall into the frame, if it’s bigger, the picture will be curved (“fish eye” effect). In general, the image quality is very good, this is also facilitated by the applied image stabilization technology EIS Anti-shake. Also note that with the Prestigio Roadrunner 500 you can take photos with a maximum resolution of 12 megapixels. True, in this case the already mentioned interpolation will be used, since the gadget is equipped with a 5-megapixel camera.
To prevent the memory card from filling up unexpectedly and therefore stop recording, the Prestigio Roadrunner 500 has a loop recording function. In other words, when the memory card is full, new fragments will be written over the old ones (the date and time are marked in the file name). Overwriting starts with the file recorded first. In the settings, you can set the duration of the fragments: 5, 10 or 15 minutes. In addition, loop recording can be completely disabled. Also in the settings you can set whether the date and time will be displayed on the video sequence.
Equally important, the Prestigio Roadrunner 500 records overlapping fragments. That is, about 1 second of the same video is present at the end of one clip and the beginning of another. This is important because in many low-cost recorder models, 1 to 5 seconds of video recording between fragments is lost. To make it clearer, let's say that a car that moves at a speed of 60 km / h travels about 80 meters in 5 seconds. Agree, during this time anything can happen. It will be a shame if this particular moment is not captured on video. All recorded information is stored on a memory card; the device does not have its own memory. The device supports SD cards up to 32 GB.
The Prestigio Roadrunner 500 is equipped with a built-in motion sensor (not to be confused with the G-sensor). It is necessary for pictures in parking mode, when the recorder responds to sound or movement near a car parked in the parking lot and automatically takes several pictures in a row. You can also configure the start of the video by triggering the motion sensor. The device also has an LED backlight. It is designed to illuminate nearby objects. Of course, it is unlikely that it will be possible to photograph road users who are several meters away from the recorder in the dark with its help. But, for example, the face of the inspector of the traffic police who approached the driver's door will be seen well. For forgetful or lazy drivers, there is a function to start recording when the engine starts and stop it after
The Prestigio Roadrunner 500 has a fairly simple and convenient menu. Even a person who is not particularly “friendly” with technology can easily figure it out. There are keys on the side of the device for quick access to key functions of the device, so you don’t have to wander around the menu for a long time to find what you need right now.
The Prestigio Roadrunner 500 package includes everything you need and more: the recorder itself, a suction cup mount on the windshield, a Nokia-compatible battery (BL-5C), an HDMI cable (by the way, this accessory comes with registrars not so often) , USB cable, AV cable (tulip), cigarette lighter charger, case, manual and warranty card. Immediately, we note a very nice package.
The results. The Prestigio Roadrunner 500 made a pleasant impression. The device is a worthy representative of the class of "car DVRs." In addition, the gadget is relatively inexpensive - less than 5,000 rubles. This is a good price for a model that writes full HD 1080p video. Well, the last touch is a two-year international warranty: compare with the one-year local warranty, which is standardly provided by almost all manufacturers.
PS Added a video in the evening-night shooting mode.
Prestigio Roadrunner 500 is made in the “candy bar” form factor, that is, the screen is not folding, it is mounted in the main body. Although the part of the device in which the lens is attached to the other part with a hinge. This is necessary for more convenient “aiming” of the lens on the road. For this, a screen with a diagonal of 2 inches is used. On it, you can view the content shot by the device.
The Prestigio Roadrunner 500 has a 5-megapixel camera (based on CMOS-matrix), which provides shooting in Full HD 1080p, the maximum frequency in this mode reaches 30 frames per second. If you set the resolution of 848 to 480, then the frequency will be 60 frames per second. By the way, in this model interpolation (software resolution stretching to a higher one) is not applied, that is, the Full HD 1080p format is real.
The device has a 1,000 mAh battery, which provides autonomous operation of the recorder for approximately two and a half hours. This suggests that you can use the Prestigio Roadrunner 500 as a portable camera if you wish. Interestingly, the device is equipped with a Nokia-compatible battery, so you can buy a couple more batteries in reserve and change them during operation. The gadget is also equipped with a convenient and high-quality holder on the suction cup. The holder sections are securely fixed, the device does not hang. At the same time, you can always, without problems, say, turn the camera into the cabin or quickly pull the recorder out of the mount.
Video examples
The videos are taken from the network.
The viewing angle of the camera is 120 degrees - this is the standard for modern DVRs. In fact, this angle can be called the “golden mean”: if it’s smaller, the side curbs will not fall into the frame, if it’s bigger, the picture will be curved (“fish eye” effect). In general, the image quality is very good, this is also facilitated by the applied image stabilization technology EIS Anti-shake. Also note that with the Prestigio Roadrunner 500 you can take photos with a maximum resolution of 12 megapixels. True, in this case the already mentioned interpolation will be used, since the gadget is equipped with a 5-megapixel camera.
To prevent the memory card from filling up unexpectedly and therefore stop recording, the Prestigio Roadrunner 500 has a loop recording function. In other words, when the memory card is full, new fragments will be written over the old ones (the date and time are marked in the file name). Overwriting starts with the file recorded first. In the settings, you can set the duration of the fragments: 5, 10 or 15 minutes. In addition, loop recording can be completely disabled. Also in the settings you can set whether the date and time will be displayed on the video sequence.
Equally important, the Prestigio Roadrunner 500 records overlapping fragments. That is, about 1 second of the same video is present at the end of one clip and the beginning of another. This is important because in many low-cost recorder models, 1 to 5 seconds of video recording between fragments is lost. To make it clearer, let's say that a car that moves at a speed of 60 km / h travels about 80 meters in 5 seconds. Agree, during this time anything can happen. It will be a shame if this particular moment is not captured on video. All recorded information is stored on a memory card; the device does not have its own memory. The device supports SD cards up to 32 GB.
The Prestigio Roadrunner 500 is equipped with a built-in motion sensor (not to be confused with the G-sensor). It is necessary for pictures in parking mode, when the recorder responds to sound or movement near a car parked in the parking lot and automatically takes several pictures in a row. You can also configure the start of the video by triggering the motion sensor. The device also has an LED backlight. It is designed to illuminate nearby objects. Of course, it is unlikely that it will be possible to photograph road users who are several meters away from the recorder in the dark with its help. But, for example, the face of the inspector of the traffic police who approached the driver's door will be seen well. For forgetful or lazy drivers, there is a function to start recording when the engine starts and stop it after
The Prestigio Roadrunner 500 has a fairly simple and convenient menu. Even a person who is not particularly “friendly” with technology can easily figure it out. There are keys on the side of the device for quick access to key functions of the device, so you don’t have to wander around the menu for a long time to find what you need right now.
The Prestigio Roadrunner 500 package includes everything you need and more: the recorder itself, a suction cup mount on the windshield, a Nokia-compatible battery (BL-5C), an HDMI cable (by the way, this accessory comes with registrars not so often) , USB cable, AV cable (tulip), cigarette lighter charger, case, manual and warranty card. Immediately, we note a very nice package.
The results. The Prestigio Roadrunner 500 made a pleasant impression. The device is a worthy representative of the class of "car DVRs." In addition, the gadget is relatively inexpensive - less than 5,000 rubles. This is a good price for a model that writes full HD 1080p video. Well, the last touch is a two-year international warranty: compare with the one-year local warranty, which is standardly provided by almost all manufacturers.
PS Added a video in the evening-night shooting mode.